1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and structure for identifying valuables, such as jewelry, works of art, and other like articles, and more particularly, to an intelligence bearing tag adapted to be securely and retrievably stored in such articles for subsequent identification of the article.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the handling of articles of high value, there are two important criteria, that is, the security aspect and the fraud aspect. In the first case, it is important that works of art and jewelry be somehow identified such that if and when they are stolen or otherwise separated from the owner, they can be easily identified as belonging to the particular owner once they have been recovered. Also, proper identification of such valuables makes it easier to identify the alleged thieves. In the case of destruction of the valuable, that is, by way of fire, explosion, airline disaster, it is necessary from the point of view of obtaining relief in the form of compensation from insurance companies, for instance, to prove the valuable article was actually destroyed. This proof is necessary from the point of view of insurance companies in order to reduce the occurrence of fraud. To date, there have been developed various identification methods, such as fingerprinting of paintings or other valuables, but as far as can be determined, such methods are useful in the case of theft but not where the article is destroyed or otherwise altered beyond visual recognition.
As in the case of forensic identification of bodies, it is necessary in the case of valuables to have a method of identification which is virtually indestructible or at least less destructible than the material forming the valuable article.